The 3 Most Important Ways to Grow
Grow your business with the most important habits, tools and strategies for marketing, advertising, media relations and public relations.
I find that the most common dilemma that people looking for exposure or business have – whether they know it or not – is whether they are doing anything right to reach their goals. Sometimes I meet people who do not have any one single goal. Sometimes they only goal they see is a dollar sign followed by six to eight figures. Everyone has different goals and there are many ways to do business. How can grow consistently and effectively?
There is no one specific answer. Many people hire consultants or consultants that perform service work like myself. But if you’re not one of my clients right now let me give you the three most important ways any business can grow:
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Track your sources of incoming business.
Gathering information from customers on how they came to be your customers tells you what is working. If you know what is working you can learn how to expand your marketing efforts.
If you’ve never kept track of where your customers come from – log each month of your sales and activity. Compare when you saw the most sales to when you remember marketing. Do not log when you may have paid for a mail-out for example because the mail-out may have reached the hands of your customers at a different time then when you paid the bill.
For those who haven’t started their business yet, never start a marketing or media strategy without a way to track new business from them. Here’s a HUGE hint: Sometimes the best results appear long-after the marketing or media push.
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Allow customers to return.
This sounds odd at first but look at it simply. Offering coupons to return, operating for at least nine hours a day and responding quickly to complaints allows your customers to return how and when they want to.
Coupons or specials will entice them. Operating consistently reduces the chance they will show up to a closed business – walking away disappointed. Responding quickly to complaints improves their feeling of value and importance.
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Market regularly to ideal customers.
Never lose pace. If you want regular business you have to regularly work for it. Whether you work by developing new strategies or by writing a check to the printers: work for it. The biggest tragedy is a great idea dying and passion losing wind.
I cannot speak for other Marketing, Advertising, Public Relations or Media Relations firms but when my long-term clients notice a decline in reaction to their current strategy, I have the ability to offer and develop an updated strategy. Make sure you regularly take a look at what you’re doing to draw business in. For some they monitor their strategy monthly while others monitor their strategy annually. Consider your goals to decide your pace of marketing.
It’s also very important that you don’t get too anxious. If you’re planning on staying business for a long time then you don’t what short-term results. Consistently think long-term for your business, marketing strategy and results tracking.
I hope everyone is ready for Friday, I sure am! I’ll see you again then – take care!
Tell a Friend,
TZ
Tony Zazza, a 15-year media, marketing and advertising expert, is the Principal of Zazza Media Strategies, a Dallas Texas Marketing Firm, that specializes in growing small to medium sized businesses to their fullest potential.
